CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Good Start Genetics, Inc., an innovative molecular diagnostics company developing the new gold standard in carrier screening, today announced that it will present results from the technical validation study for its proprietary next-generation DNA sequencing platform at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM). ASRM will be held from October 15-19, 2011 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.

Greg Porreca, Ph.D., a company founder and the Director of Technology, is scheduled to present the data on Tuesday, October 18th during the Procedures and Techniques Laboratory oral discussion session that will be held from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. The presentation (abstract #0201) is titled, "A Novel Next-Generation DNA Sequencing Test for Detection of Disease Mutations in Carrier and Affected Individuals."

Good Start Genetics' next-generation sequencing (NGS) platform is a highly accurate, high-throughput platform that evaluates patient DNA samples and is expected to yield high detection rates regardless of ethnicity by detection of both common and novel disease-causing mutations associated with recessive genetic disorders.

Routine genetic carrier screening has traditionally employed targeted mutation analysis technologies for genotyping, which, due to cost considerations, are designed to detect only a small number of the most common disease-causing mutations that are prevalent in only specific populations. The NGS platform developed by Good Start Genetics, however, allows for a more comprehensive determination of carrier status in routine clinical practice because it is not limited to a small targeted mutation set and, therefore, can achieve high clinical sensitivities regardless of ethnicity. Because this platform is highly scalable, it overcomes the cost limitations of the older, first-generation Sanger technique, which although also highly accurate, has had very limited use in routine clinical practice.

Good Start Genetics will soon be offering testing services to U.S. fertility clinics through its state-of-the-art CLIA approved lab for all genetic disorders recommended by the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), the American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG) and several national Jewish advocacy organizations.

Good Start Genetics is setting the new gold standard for carrier screening in routine clinical practice by making testing for the most comprehensive set of known and novel disease-causing mutations accessible. After years of development and rigorous validation, Good Start Genetics has harnessed the power of next-generation sequencing and other best-in-class technologies to provide highly accurate, actionable, and affordable tests for all ACOG and ACMG recommended disorders. For these reasons, fertility specialists and their patients can have a high degree of confidence in their carrier screening results and no longer have to compromise accuracy for price.

These tests were developed and their performance characteristics determined by Good Start Genetics. They have not been cleared or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. However, the laboratory is regulated under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) as qualified to perform high complexity clinical testing, and the tests have been analytically validated in accordance with CLIA standards.